Comment on ‘Impacts of aeolian dust deposition on phytoplankton dynamics in Queensland coastal waters’ by Shaw et al. (2008)
Doug MackieA Department of Chemistry, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand.
B Email: dmackie@chemistry.otago.ac.nz
Marine and Freshwater Research 61(4) 502-503 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF09092
Published: 27 April 2010
Abstract
The central premise of the paper by Shaw et al. (2008) (hereafter SGM) is that phytoplankton in coastal waters of Queensland, Australia, were nutrient-limited and that biomass increased immediately following a large dust storm in October 2002. I will show that (i) the timing of the phytoplankton response precludes the dust storm as a causative agent for chlorophyll increases and (ii) it is not clear that there was actually any change in chlorophyll in response to the dust storm.
Acknowledgement
The author was supported by a University of Otago Research Grant.
McTainsh, G. , Chan, Y. C. , McGowan, H. , Leys, J. , and Tews, K. (2005). The 23rd October 2002 dust storm in eastern Australia: characteristics and meteorological conditions. Atmospheric Environment 39, 1227–1236.
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Shao, Y. P. , Leys, J. F. , McTainsh, G. H. , and Tews, K. (2007). Numerical simulation of the October 2002 dust event in Australia. Journal of Geophysical Research-Atmospheres 112, D08207.
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Shaw, E. C. , Gabric, A. J. , and McTainsh, G. H. (2008). Impacts of aeolian dust deposition on phytoplankton dynamics in Queensland coastal waters. Marine and Freshwater Research 59, 951–962.
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